Guce 5 shots off in Epson Tour after 70

MANILA, Philippines -- Clariss Guce rebounded from a double bogey misfortune with two birdies in the last six holes at the front as she salvaged a 70 and trail a hot-starting Cydney Clanton by five after 18 holes of the IOA Golf Classic in Longwood, Florida Friday (Saturday Manila time).

Guce mixed two birdies against a bogey in a backside start at the soft par-71 Alaqua Country Club course but dropped two strokes on the par-5 No. 3 to fall off the leaderboard. The US-based Filipina, however, struck back with a birdie on the par-3 fourth then holed out with another birdie on the ninth for a pair of 35s.

She missed just three fairways and the same number of greens but grappled with her putter, finishing with 31 putts.

Guce tied 16 others at 20th, five shots behind Clanton, who sizzled with an eagle-spiked 65 to set the pace in the kickoff tournament of this year’s Epson Tour.

Clanton, who also fired five birdies against a lone bogey, led Taiwanese Jessica Peng, Lindsey McCurdy of the US and Frenchwoman Dewi Weber, who all put in 66s, by one in the weather-suspended first round.

The other Filipinas, however, struggled coming off the season break with Tomita Arejola and Pauline del Rosario matching 72s and Abby Arevalo fumbing with a 74.

Arejola and the ICTSI-backed del Rosario gunned down two birdies against three bogeys each for joint 54th, while Arevalo slipped with four bogeys with only a birdie to show for a 73. She dropped to a share of 84th in a starting field of 132.